You may have heard a popular song titled “Year of The Cat” by Al Stewart. Not sure what year he was referring to, but 2020 could be called the Year of the “Cut.” Many businesses had to cut their budgets as more customers were locked down at home, and revenues were down.

Some businesses couldn’t keep up on rent for office space, so employees were sent to work from home. The fact is, some employers don’t have enough space now to bring all their employees back into the office because of social distancing. This massive home-based workforce seems to be not just a temporary event, but as we move into 2021, it appears it’s here to stay.

Business Communication Myths Have Changed

Communication is vital to any business. Without it, information, ideas, and workflows can’t be shared from person to person or more broadly across an enterprise. Without communication, there is no direction, no leadership, and no customer support. The worry was that depending on a workforce based at home, communication, collaboration, and customer experience would suffer.

The past myths have changed. People can work effectively and productively from home or remotely. We’ve proven that to be exactly the case. In many situations, people are actually more productive, making more significant contributions, working from anywhere with a happier, better work-life balance.

Remote work doesn’t work for everybody. Clearly, you’ve got cultural challenges. You’ve got different personalities. Some people are very social and love to be surrounded by others. Some people would rather work alone and focus on getting the job done, and that’s great.

With Unified Communications technology, employees can do their work more easily and are happier, and employers are thrilled because their employees are happy. You get better loyalty, better commitment and dedication, and better work. You may have a small office with a limited staff, but most of your workforce can be remote.

Employers have started to learn how to work through the challenges of the “new normal.” Collaboration in the office worked well, but collaboration in a virtual world can also work very well. Cooperation in this new hybrid business communication model was thought to be a challenge for those working remotely. But Unified Communications as a Service (‘UCaaS’) is the technology that rose to be the solution.

UCaaS has redefined connecting with video

Video is the most personal method of electronic communication available today. Business is as much about relationships as it is about the process, and that goes for both customer support and employee experience. Video fosters those relationships in a way that voice calls, text, and email simply cannot.

While UCaaS consolidates communication channels and platforms such as voice, video, SMS, and email in the cloud, the video element, in particular, has improved communication and collaboration immensely for remote work.

When working collaboratively on a project, conducting negotiations, or working through business decisions, seeing the person you are speaking to adds depth to the experience and the relationship.

Seeing body language and seeing their reactions in real-time makes for a much better level of communication. Without it, you run into potential miscommunications, which can be particularly important when dealing with customers or clients when used to conducting in-person meetings or communication.

With 2020 behind us and the importance of video conferencing coming into play, and the ease in which UCaaS makes it available to use, it’s apparent that people and businesses understand the video is the new voice and is finally being recognized for its benefits. Apps such as Crexendo’s video conferencing software have everyone working remotely. This allows for a highly distributed work model, and it’s not just working from home; it’s work from anywhere.

Improve work-life balance and lessen carbon footprint

Executives no longer need to travel halfway around the world to do transactions, and everyday employees no longer need to travel to the doctor’s office. From a corporate perspective, not having to travel to a physical location helps lessen our carbon footprint. From an efficiency perspective, it also helps improve work-life balance.

In the past, big transactions could require travel, coordination of schedule, and high costs overall. Now, you can make a phone or audio call in the same way you can make a video call and be connected to a single party or multiple parties instantly. Plus, UCaaS offers irreplaceable collaboration tools for everyday work like file-sharing, document storage, messaging, and more.

The costs saved from unnecessary travel expenses can be reinvested into your business, leading to future growth. This is especially important for offices with higher numbers of remote workers. Video and other collaboration features add a feeling of community to the employment experience that isn’t available via traditional communications methods.

Growing Presence of AI

Unified communications in 2021 can only improve as cloud-based UCaaS communication services companies like Crexendo look for ways to improve employees’ experience and team collaboration. As technology advances, productivity will increase, resulting in better customer experience.

As we see in many industries AI (artificial intelligence) looks to become more prevalent in communication processes. Tools such as virtual chatbots and virtual assistants will become more common and be seen as indispensable. Implementing AI furthers the goal of technology, improving productivity and collaboration, and reach faster and more accurate outcomes.

You can rely on Crexendo

The world is changing faster than ever before, seemingly even faster as we all work to stay relevant. There is no way to know how 2021 will play out. It is hard to predict as surprises like massive pandemics and financial downturns can rear their ugly heads.

As long as we have robust and ever-improving affordable communication solutions such as UCaaS that integrates all digital communication forms, your business can flourish.

Crexendo focuses on discovering exactly what your business needs and making sure your business can succeed in this modern age at an affordable price. Contact us now at 602-714-8500 for a free demo!